Blood Red Challenge
by Leo M. R
Summary: Ethan has finally made it to the summit of Mt. Silver, the final destination for all the strongest Pokémon Trainers in the Kanto and Johto regions. An impossibly difficult battle awaits him and his trusted Pokémon team, overseen by none other than Blue and Leaf. The legendary battle for the top... Ethan vs. Red, begin!
1. At the Peak of the Mountain

At the Peak of the Mountain

_Mt. Silver sure is harsh._

That was what Pokémon Trainer Ethan thought as he took his final steps through the snowy ground. Even though he was told that this was the time when diamond dust falls on the summit of this mountain, there was none right now. It was eerily quiet and empty.

_It's like the sky itself knows what I'm heading for. But I don't._

Ethan continued his climb until he came to an opening. He looked around, and then walked straight ahead. The sky was quiet; there was no wind blowing through. And even though his feet were buried in the snow, he didn't feel too cold.

"Looks like you finally made it, runt," a voice came from somewhere above him. Ethan didn't bother to look.

"Yeah, told you I'd do it, Blue," he answered.

A young man smiled above him. Blue was older than Ethan, by about three years. He had brown, spiky hair and wore a black jacket on top of a white undershirt, and long brown pants were covering his legs. He was sitting on a tree branch as Ethan walked past him.

"Are you ready, Ethan?" another person sounded, a female this time. Ethan didn't bother to look up, either.

"Who would make it this far up Mt. Silver and not be ready, Leaf?"

A young woman frowned above him. Like Blue, Leaf was Ethan's senior in age by three years. She had a small, square white hat with red circular patterns on it on her head, and was wearing an aquamarine sweater and long red pants.

"So," Ethan addressed Blue and Leaf, "where's this friend of yours that you wanted me to meet?"

Blue smiled and closed his eyes. "More of that Johto-style confidence. I wonder if that's good enough..."

Leaf jumped down from the tree branch she was on and landed in front of Ethan. She pointed to the very edge of the summit of the mountain. "Over there."

Ethan said nothing and walked past her. His silence hid the fact that he was shivering; not from the cold, but from anticipation. _I'm not a Barboach, so why would I shudder with anticipation?_

After a few more steps, Ethan finally saw what it is Blue and Leaf wanted him to see. What quieted the sky and calmed the wild Pokémon. What made him shiver a few moments earlier.

A person, standing with his back to Ethan. He turned to face Ethan and grabbed the front of his cap with his right hand. Ethan's heart nearly skipped a beat.

"Ethan, meet Red."

* * *

><p>"The rules for battle here are different than what you're used to, runt," Blue said to Ethan as the younger Trainer stood on the opposite side of the snow-covered field across Red. As in all corners of the Pokémon world, a proper greeting between two Trainers is with a battle.<p>

"You will engage in six one-on-one battles. Each battle will end when one of the Pokémon are unable to battle," Blue continued, still sitting on a branch, although on a different tree, the one closest to the field Red and Ethan were on. Leaf was standing on the ground beneath him.

"Each battle has a three-minute period. Should your Pokémon last longer than the given time for a battle, you are considered to have won the battle, Ethan. And if you win one battle, you have surpassed Red's challenge. There will be no judge for this battle and no substitutions are allowed."

Ethan was taken aback by this unorthodox method of Pokémon battling. "What was that?" he exclaimed, turning to face Blue. "What do you mean I win if one of my Pokémon can battle for more than three minutes?"

Blue looked down on Ethan, both figuratively and literally. "I thought you were supposed to be smart, little runt. What don't you understand?"

"Everything! For starters, what's up with that rule? Surely my Pokémon will be victorious if I can knock one of Red's out, right?" Ethan replied. "And what's up with me winning the whole thing after I've won only one battle?"

Blue laughed. "Ahahahahahahaha! You still haven't figured it out?"

"What's so funny?" Ethan was getting riled up.

Blue looked at him again. He was still smiling but his tone was dead serious. "You don't **win** against Red. You **survive** against Red."

Ethan's eyes widened. But before he could respond, Leaf spoke. "Ethan, those are the rules. Just carry out this battle and you'll understand everything soon enough."

"But..."

"And you'll see why no judge is needed," Leaf added.

Ethan became quiet. But since those two are the very reason he was here anyway, Ethan decided to just play along. He turned around and faced Red.

_Something's wrong with him,_ Ethan thought. Red was just standing there, completely silent and seemingly unmoving. Even the wind seemed to blow away from him, as if in fear. The sight was surreal. The sight was **un**real

"Both Trainers ready?" Blue called out. The two Trainers on the field nodded slowly. Ethan kept his cool as he scanned his foe.

_His face. I can't see his face._ Red and Ethan each took out a shrunken Poké Ball from their pockets and pressed the button to enlarge it.

"Then let the challenge start. Round 1, begin!"


	2. Round One

Round One

Ethan's opponent held his Poké Ball firmly in his hand and opened it without saying anything. A few moments later, a Snorlax came out, lying on its back.

"A Snorlax..." Ethan uttered. "Okay, then I'll match it up with you," he referred to his Poké Ball as he threw it high into the air. "Go, Ambipom!" and with a loud 'PING', the Poké Ball opened and a happy, smiling Ambipom popped out.

Red didn't react. At all. But Ethan wasn't bothered. "I'll make the first move then. Ambipom, use Double Hit!"

Ambipom quickly ran towards Snorlax and used its tails to hit Snorlax's sides twice. But Snorlax didn't respond. In fact, it didn't move a bit.

"Not calling any shots, Red?" Ethan tried taunting his foe, but Red remained as still as his Snorlax, which annoyed Ethan. "Fine! Ambipom, Double Hit again!"

Ambipom carried out its orders and hit Snorlax, this time both hits were delivered towards its belly. Again, the hits landed but Snorlax was still unmoving. As did its Trainer.

"What the... you're not gonna attack? Or at least tell Snorlax to dodge?" Ethan asked in astonishment. In response, Red fixed his hat.

"That's it? Nothing?" Ethan called out, but Red stayed quiet. Angered, Ethan shifted his focus towards his Pokémon. "Ambipom, jump and use Double Hit on its head as hard as you can!"

Ambipom screeched as it jumped towards Snorlax's head and used its tails to slap Snorlax's cheeks hard. The blows hit home and Snorlax grunted a little.

"Heh. How do you like that?" Ethan said to Red. Red didn't answer back. Ethan took a deep breath to prevent himself from getting annoyed further. "Alright then, I'll just keep up the attacks."

"Ambipom, use Double Hit again and again until that big lump of fat moves!" Ambipom did what Ethan told it to and ran around Snorlax, using its tails one after another to strike Snorlax from all sides in rapid succession. Snorlax still didn't move.

"Change tactics. Use your Seed Bomb attack!"

From out of nowhere, Ambipom gathered a cluster of big, hard-shelled seeds on its hands and then it ran rings around Snorlax, scattering the seeds all over its foe, which blew up on impact.

"More! Keep up the Seed Bomb, Ambipom!"

Ambipom picked up more seeds and jumped again and again over Snorlax while slamming the seeds on it. Even though the sounds of the explosive impacts make it sound painful, Snorlax didn't seem to mind at all.

"I guess it can shrug off Seed Bomb, too," Ethan said through gritted teeth. "Alright then. Ambipom, stop and focus."

Ambipom stopped jumping around and suddenly took a battle stance. Its right arm glowed white and Ambipom closed its eyes. Ethan inhaled.

"Now, Ambipom. Focus Punch!" Ethan shouted, and Ambipom opened its eyes as it yelled and threw a powerful punch right at Snorlax.

"Snorlax, stop it with Crunch," Red said suddenly and Snorlax stood up even more suddenly and actually **bit** into Ambipom's right hand, and its Focus Punch attack failed.

"What the heck?" Ethan was taken completely by surprise as Ambipom screamed loudly in pain. Snorlax's face still showed a relaxed expression, but it was evidently crunching hard.

"Snorlax, Body Slam," Red said calmly, and much to Ethan's horror, Snorlax **jumped** high into the air, carrying Ambipom - whose right hand was still in its mouth - with it. They stopped at about ten meters in the air.

"Ambipom, Double Hit! Hit its face and try to get loose!" Ethan quickly ordered as gravity started to bring the both of them down. Ambipom complied and repeatedly struck Snorlax's face with its tails, but again Snorlax brushed the attacks off.

A few seconds later they crashed to the ground. With its tremendous weight, Snorlax's fall caused a small earthquake in the area. Ethan shook where he stood, but Red didn't. And the bad news for Ethan was that Snorlax managed to pull Ambipom towards its stomach before they hit the ground, effectively crushing Ambipom beneath its massive belly.

"Ambipom!" Ethan screamed. Snorlax stood up, and it was obviously hurt. Its face and body were bruised. After such a long fall, it became wobbly. But it managed to stay standing anyway.

"Snorlax, Rest," And Red's Snorlax lay down and went to sleep.

As for Ethan's Ambipom, it was still on the ground, just lying there unmoving. It had taken the brunt of the fall and was crushed by Snorlax. Ethan dropped a sweat of instant fear.

"Ambipom, no! Are you okay? Get up!" But Ambipom did not get up.

Ethan called out. "Ambipom! Answer me!" Ambipom managed to answer back with a little shout itself, and then it started to get up.

"Oh good, you're okay!" Ethan was relieved to see his Pokémon moving again as Snorlax snored. However, Ambipom's body was badly, badly damaged, much more so than Snorlax's.

"Can you keep fighting?" he asked as Ambipom struggled to its feet. Ambipom nodded, looking fierce as it tried its hardest to stand up.

"Then come on, stand up! This is our chance to strike back while Snorlax is sleeping," Ethan shouted. Ambipom propped itself up with its tails, but then it fell again. Snorlax snored once more.

Ethan's heart was beating fast. "Hurry up, before it wakes up! You've got to stand up! Ambipom!" Ambipom punched the ground with its hand and slowly stood up, breathing very heavily.

"Yes!" Ethan smiled with relief for a second, before Snorlax grunted loudly and then proceeded to stand up, and Ethan's smile turned into a look of astonishment. Snorlax was awake again.

This time Red took the initiative. "Snorlax, prepare yourself. Move in close," he commanded. Snorlax lifted its feet and then **ran** towards Ambipom! It ran slowly but surely.

Ethan sure didn't want Ambipom to take another direct hit. "Dodge and then drop a rain of Seed Bomb attack on Snorlax!"

But Ambipom was too tired to run away, and that became evident quick. So Ethan changed plans. "Ambipom, use your tails to throw you up high into the air!"

Ambipom used its remaining strength and hopped in place using its tails just as Snorlax was about to reach it. Ambipom spun in the air and threw massive seeds on top of Snorlax's head.

"Snorlax, turn around, grab its tails and use Outrage."

"WHAT?" Ethan was dumbstruck as Snorlax turned around - bathed in a mystical red glow and apparently unfazed from the Seed Bomb attack - and started **rampaging** **at Ambipom!**

Poor Ambipom's tail was suddenly pulled down by Snorlax and then it was slammed at the ground before being thrown to a thick tree nearby. Snorlax then released a barrage of punches, and occasionally kicks, on Ambipom, one after another without so much a second of pause in between.

The Long Tail Pokémon could move nowhere to save itself, and despite Ethan's desperate cries, it couldn't counterattack. The sound of Snorlax's fists meeting Ambipom's face was sickening, and the sound of Ambipom's body impacting with the tree with each of Snorlax's hits was unbearable to Ethan.

Snorlax kept up the attacks; punching, punching, punching, kicking, then punching again, and so on, mercilessly pounding Ambipom to a pulp blow after blow after blow. Red said nothing. Ethan kept on shouting. And Ambipom kept screeching loudly for help.

After another half minute or so, the worst thing happened: the tree **snapped in half**, which meant the thick tree had taken more pressure than it could handle. And Ethan didn't dare think what that implied for his poor Pokémon.

Snorlax stopped and started getting wobbly again. It walked away from the tree in a zig-zag fashion, and it looked woozy. It was obviously confused.

As for Ambipom, it had fallen on its knees before dropping to the snowy ground, unconscious. As Ethan neared it in a hurry, he could see splatters of blood red on snow white.

"Ambipom!" he yelled as he picked it up, and saw that it was bleeding in several places, most notably its face. It didn't move.

"Ambipom... speak to me. Please, tell me that you're gonna be okay." When Ambipom didn't respond, tears formed in his eyes. "Ambipom!"

And Ambipom still didn't make a sound. However, it managed to let out a small breath, and Ethan took that as a sign that it **was** going to be okay, after some rest and intensive medical care.

Ethan smiled a little. "Ambipom... Don't worry, I'm going to get you to a Pokémon Center right away. For now, you go and rest up." He then grabbed his Poké Ball and returned Ambipom to it, before a drop of tear fell on top of the Poké Ball.

Red also returned Snorlax to its Poké Ball. Over on the other side of the field, Leaf opened her mouth and asked Blue. "Time?"

Blue silently checked his wristwatch. "One minute and forty two seconds," he stated loudly. Then he looked towards Ethan, who was trudging through the snow towards Red in absolute rage. "That battle lasted longer than I thought."

The next second, Ethan punched Red in the face.


	3. Anger Point

Anger Point

"You scumbag! Why didn't you call your Snorlax off?" Ethan yelled as he grabbed the front part of Red's collar. "That Outrage attack was way out of control! You should've stopped it as soon as it became obvious that my Ambipom had lost already!"

Red said nothing.

"Hey, are you deaf? I'm talking to you, Red!" Ethan shouted even louder.

Red said nothing.

"ANSWER ME!"

Red said nothing.

Without hesitation, Ethan raised his right hand again and delivered a mean right hook to Red's left cheek, but he didn't let Red's collar go.

"My Ambipom is seriously hurt," Ethan said, his voice cracking, his eyes watering. "Pokémon battles weren't meant to go **that **far. A Pokémon battle is supposed to only be a friendly fight in which the Pokémon and their Trainers give their best in order to grow stronger. And form friendships with other Trainers..."

"But you. You were battling as if you were aiming to kill. This isn't what Pokémon battles are all about. You're abusing your right as a Pokémon Trainer and you're betraying the trust your Pokémon are showing you. This isn't right! What do you have to say for yourself?"

Red said nothing.

Ethan's sadness transformed into fury. "YOU'RE STILL BEING QUIET?" And he smashed Red's forehead with his own. Red fell down on the snow-covered ground. Ethan stood up; eyes wet with tears and face red with rage.

"Take this, you little piece of..." Ethan raised his right hand again, ready for a punch to Red's stomach when all of a sudden a hand grabbed his elbow firmly and stopped him from moving.

"Enough acting like a Primeape, Ethan," Leaf said calmly from behind him. Ethan turned to look at her, and to his surprise it was Blue who was holding him back. Leaf was standing to his left.

"We didn't ask you to come up here to have a fistfight with Red. We asked you to have a Pokémon battle with him," she continued.

"But Leaf! You saw what he did! He purposely commanded his Snorlax to crush my Ambipom without mercy!" Ethan shouted to her, struggling to free his elbow, but to no avail. "You can't possibly think that that's okay?"

"I don't," Leaf answered, "but that's not the point. You're here to fight a Pokémon battle and that's all. Blue and I warned you that this will be the hardest challenge of your life. Are you telling me you're going to back down?"

"What? I don't believe this! You guys are seriously **letting** this jerk do whatever he wants to the Pokémon of other Trainers like that?" Ethan shouted again, still struggling against Blue's grasp. "That's not right! You don't care about Pokémon and you have no respect for other Trainers! What kind of people are you?"

"Do you think this is just a game, Ethan?" Blue said to him sternly. "Do you see Pokémon journeys as merely little adventures where you go out to see the world with your dearest friends, challenging other people to get better and stopping bad guys with the powers of friendship and trust?"

Ethan looked at his senior. "What?"

"Do you think that life in this world of ours is like that? Do you see Pokémon battling as friendly matches between friends like playing cards or sports, where winning or losing doesn't really matter in the long run? Is that what you've been thinking all this time, Ethan?"

"I... I... What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that this battle with Red is real life!" Blue scolded him. "This **isn't** some sort of video game where you run around with your Pokémon and fighting battles and saving other people, occasionally resting up in Pokémon Centers! You don't get to do that here! There are no guaranteed rest stops and save points in real life! You have to give it your all, your everything, for your Pokémon's sake. And I **mean** your everything."

Ethan stopped struggling as he listened to what Blue was saying.

"Red's challenge is only given to Pokémon Trainers who we deem are strong enough to face him head on non-stop," Blue continued. "**This **is real life! **This **is real danger! Stop acting like a little kid and **deal **with it! Unless you don't have the mentality to go all the way, then you can go back home and play your little game. Leave this mountain NOW!"

With that tone of finality, Blue let Ethan's elbow go. Ethan said nothing, and merely looked at Blue, who was waiting for his answer. Leaf walked towards Red and helped him up.

Red fixed his shirt and cap, and then walked back towards his previous spot, in silence. Ethan looked at him, and thought he saw a hint of sadness in his eyes. Ethan breathed deeply.

His opponent was ready again, standing still. Blue and Leaf was looking at him expectantly.

Ethan closed his eyes, and nodded slowly. Then he proceeded to wipe the tears in his eyes and looked at Blue and Leaf. "I get it. I understand now," he said to them.

"Now I see. I really **do** have to survive here, don't I? This isn't just some battle I have to win. This is a challenge for life. All this time, all the things I've been through... They didn't teach me to survive. They only made me stronger, but they never really pushed me and my Pokémon towards the brink of death." He opened his eyes and looked at Red. "And he knows that, doesn't he?"

Blue and Leaf nodded together quietly. Ethan smiled, but it wasn't a smile of joy. It was a smile of desperation. "Fine. I accept the challenge. I'll show you. I'll show you all just how survivable I can be."

And with that he walked back towards his own spot, across the field from Red. Blue and Leaf looked at each other and then proceeded to go back to their previous tree.

As soon as Blue sat back down on his branch, and Leaf standing beneath him once more, Blue shouted towards the two Trainers. "Both Trainers ready?"

Red and Ethan nodded, each taking out a Poké Ball.

_This is it. This is real. This is life. Survival of the fittest. A Pokémon battle driven by the desire not to win, but to live. I'm ready._

"Then let the challenge resume. Round 2, begin!"


	4. Round Two

Round Two

Red was utterly quiet as he let his second Pokémon out for battle. Accompanied by the usual 'PING' of a Poké Ball opening, a big blue Pokémon appeared on the field, roaring.

This time his opponent mimicked his silence. He controlled his breaths to focus his thoughts, and then he too let his Pokémon out: a Gliscor that flew around while screeching, like it's excited.

"Gliscor, stay sharp," Ethan said to it as Gliscor came near him. "We can't let our guards down in this battle, not even for a second."

He then thought of Ambipom and its bloody body, now resting inside its Poké Ball. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he turned to Gliscor.

"Ambipom's beaten, and it's badly hurt," he continued. "I wanna get it to a Pokémon Center as fast as I can, but I can't leave this place right now. The fastest way for us to leave and do that is to win a battle. One battle."

Seeing Gliscor tilt its head in confusion, Ethan crouched down and held Gliscor's shoulders. "That's right, just one battle. If you can win this, if you can take out that Blastoise, we'll be able to get Ambipom to a Pokémon Center. So I'm really counting on you to do your best."

Ethan smiled, and Gliscor returned it wholeheartedly. Then it put its right claw on its chest, as if reassuring Ethan that he didn't need to worry any longer. And with that, Ethan let go of Gliscor's shoulders and the Fang Scorp Pokémon flew off into the air.

"Let's get started," Ethan uttered. "Gliscor, use Sandstorm!"

Gliscor screeched again as it swooped low above the field, and as it flapped its wings, a huge cloud of sand appeared, even though the ground was covered with snow. Then Gliscor flew up while spinning its body and picking up speed, and the high-speed flying dispersed the sand and soon there was a huge cyclone of sand and stones around the battlefield.

"Not enough! Not big enough!" Ethan called out to Gliscor. "We gotta make sure this sandstorm last longer than usual so we'll have the advantage for the whole battle, so keep flying fast!"

Gliscor chirped a little to indicate that it got the command, and then it flew in circles high above the field in an even higher speed. The wind that it generated kicked up the sand and stones far and wide, and soon the whole mountaintop was covered in a raging sandstorm.

Ethan looked at Red, trying to see if the older Trainer was going to tell his Pokémon to make a move. To Ethan's surprise, he did. "Blastoise, a direct Hydro Cannon."

Blastoise growled as two water cannons jut out from the top sides of its shell. A few seconds later, two big orbs of water formed in its cannons, and then Blastoise fired them.

The powerful orbs of water flew straight at the flying Gliscor, and for a moment it looked like it was about to knock it down. But then, Gliscor disappeared from sight and the water orbs hit nothing but empty, sandy air.

"Ha!" Ethan yelled out to Red. "My Gliscor's Ability is Sand Veil. In case you didn't know, that means Gliscor can evade attacks with a higher efficiency under a sandstorm."

Red didn't say or do anything after Ethan stated this, but Ethan didn't care. Right now, all he wanted to do was to win as fast as he can so he could get to a Pokémon Center and let his Ambipom get the treatment it needed.

_Now's my chance, _he thought. _A Pokémon that has just used Hydro Cannon won't be able to make a move for a while, which means..._ "Gliscor, Earthquake!" he commanded.

The flying Pokémon was nowhere to be seen amidst all the sand in the sky, but a few seconds after Ethan's command, there was a yell from somewhere in the middle of the field, followed by a resounding 'BOOM' that resulted in a small, localized earthquake.

Unlike Gliscor, Blastoise was easy to see since it was big and blue, and Ethan was pleased to see Red's Blastoise shook where it stood before falling on its right knee, brushing off the continuous stream of sand and stones that were raining down on it. "Yeah, fighting in a sandstorm should be pretty hard for a non-Ground-, Steel-, or Rock-type Pokémon," he mumbled.

Red squinted his eyes. "Iron Defense," he said, and Blastoise grunted before retreating into its big shell. For a moment, the shell shined and then afterwards Blastoise's head, arms, legs and cannons all came out of it again.

Ethan frowned when he saw what Red commanded Blastoise to do. "He raised its Defense. Good move. But he can't attack Gliscor in this sandstorm, so I'll just wither it down." Then he turned his attention to the battlefield. "Gliscor, Earthquake again!"

Shortly after, there was another 'BOOM' and another earthquake followed. However, in the gap between Ethan's order and Gliscor carrying it out, Red instructed his Blastoise to use Iron Defense again, and so the Shellfish Pokémon was inside its shining shell when the earthquake struck.

"Darn it!" Ethan muttered as Blastoise popped out of its shell, looking tougher than before. It shook its body where it stood to keep the sand and stones away from its body. Then Ethan saw his Pokémon gliding nearby. "Gliscor, sweep Blastoise off its feet with Aqua Tail!"

Gliscor screeched a little as it disappeared again like a vampire in the night, only to come into view a few seconds later behind Blastoise. It then spun its tail like a rotor and suddenly there was a spiral of water surrounding it. Gliscor waved its watery tail and swung it down.

"Iron Defense, Blastoise," Red commanded right when Gliscor was preparing to use its Aqua Tail. Blastoise retreated to its big shell once more and Gliscor's tail failed to hit Blastoise's feet. Aqua Tail hit the shell instead and sent the Shellfish Pokémon spinning like a disc to the middle of the field.

The older Trainer wasted no time in giving his Pokémon another instruction. "Blastoise, use the momentum to start Rapid Spin."

Responsively, Blastoise - still inside its shell - began spinning faster and faster until it was lifted slightly into the air.

"Gliscor, chase after it and ground it with Aqua Tail!" Ethan shouted, and Gliscor went after the spinning Blastoise.

"Blastoise, repeated Hydro Cannon," Red said to it calmly, and much to Ethan's amazement Blastoise's two water cannons jut out again and then it started firing big orbs of water in all directions as it kept spinning.

When Gliscor came close to Blastoise, it got hit by the Hydro Cannon and then it was shot back. "Gliscor!" Ethan cried out as Gliscor hit the ground hard, but then the fact that Blastoise wasn't stopping took his attention.

"What the..." he murmured in astonishment as Blastoise started making **a cyclone** with its Rapid Spin attack, and it just kept on firing Hydro Cannons this way and that, and the result was nothing short of spectacular: in the midst of the sandstorm was a giant vortex of wind, from which powerful balls of water were being shot out!

The Hydro Cannon attacks were launched in all directions in the sky as Blastoise kept spinning, and when the water orbs blew up due to high air pressure, they merged with all the sand that was whipping around from Gliscor's Sandstorm attack.

Slowly, the dry, powdery sand that was covering the field turned wet and gooey. Due to the inclusion of water in the storm, it wasn't sandy anymore; it was muddy. Ethan's jaw dropped as he realized what Red had just done: he had stopped the sandstorm that hid Gliscor so well by making it wet without making it rain.

Now, due to Gliscor's original Sandstorm technique still in effect, mud was flying all over the place, and the sticky combination of sand and water covered Gliscor's wings so that it could no longer fly as fast or as high as it did earlier. Gliscor was trying to get up after being hit by the Hydro Cannon. Ethan knew full well that his Pokémon was weak to water.

"What the heck, Red? Why did you do that?" he called out to his foe as Blastoise finally stopped spinning and landed awkwardly on the ground. "You could've just used Rain Dance if you wanted to make it wet!"

As usual, Red's response was a no-response. As Blastoise was regaining its composure, Ethan focused back on Gliscor. "Gliscor, now's our chance. Use Earthquake!"

Gliscor complied and struck the ground with its two claws powerfully. However, nothing happened. "Ah, I forgot!" Ethan yelled in realization. "Gliscor doesn't have the physical strength to create earthquakes directly; it first needs to gain momentum from highflying!"

He looked at his Pokémon, who was trying to get rid of the mud on its webbed wings. "The fact that its wings are covered in mud probably has something to do with it as well..." Ethan thought aloud when Blastoise growled and shook its head, no longer dizzy.

Red quickly issued another order. "Rapid Spin." With that, Blastoise went inside its shell once more and started spinning while hovering, this time laterally, and headed straight for Gliscor.

Ethan blinked. "Fly away, Gliscor! Fly away!" Gliscor tried its hardest to fly, but Ethan knew that, due to the shape of its wings, Gliscor needed to glide on an air current first before it could fly, and the mudstorm – still flying around because it was originally a Sandstorm – was sticking on it and weighing it down.

_Not again. Not again. _The younger Trained shuddered as he recalled how Snorlax had charged towards his Ambipom before unleashing Outrage. He tried not to think about it and concentrated on the battle on hand. "X-Scissor, now!"

Gliscor immediately crossed its claws in front of its chest and then a light blue light glowed from them, in the form of an X. With a loud yell, Gliscor swiped the air in an X-formation, and the energy was fired.

The X-shaped energy hit Blastoise but was promptly deflected due to its Rapid Spin. Gliscor could do nothing as a mere second later the bigger Pokémon crashed into it, knocking it all the way to a far rocky wall.

Without missing a beat, Blastoise stopped spinning and came out of its shell and proceeded to pin Gliscor to the wall with both of its arms as it stood firm. Ethan couldn't believe this was happening again. "No! Gliscor, free yourself! Close range X-Scissor!"

This time, Red wasn't staying silent. "Skull Bash."

Gliscor's claws glowed blue again and then it swiped in an X-shape on Blastoise's face at point blank. However, Blastoise didn't seem to be affected, and for its part it pulled its head back, readying itself for a counterattack.

"X-Scissor again!" Ethan cried out. Gliscor slashed at Blastoise's face again, this time with more power, but still no effect. Blastoise was beginning to emit a silvery glow from its body.

"X-Scissor! X-Scissor! X-Scissor! X-Scissor" Ethan shouted in panic, telling Gliscor to keep attacking Blastoise as fierce as it could. Gliscor did exactly that and kept slashing and swiping at Blastoise's face with its two claws in an X-shape. Blastoise's face was hit hard and it was forced to face right and left and right and left with every X-Scissor Gliscor landed, but it didn't stop preparing itself and soon enough, the silver glow went to its head.

Red's look was of total indifference as he uttered, "Now."

"GLISCOR, AQUA TAIL ON BLASTOISE'S HEAD!"

On Red's call, Blastoise brought its head down straight towards Gliscor, utterly **smashing** the smaller Pokémon with it. However, a second before the blow connected, Gliscor managed to bring its tail up, once more covered in spiraling water, and whipped it vertically down on Blastoise's own head. Ethan hoped that would soften the impact from Blastoise's Skull Bash.

The two attacks clashed, but needless to say Skull Bash overpowered Aqua Tail and Gliscor was hit in the head with devastating force, creating a large hole in the rocky wall behind it. Blastoise let go of Gliscor and stepped back, holding the sides of its bloody face.

Fortunately for Ethan, there was a breeze precisely at that moment and Gliscor was able to ride on it and glided away, safe from the clutches of the Shellfish Pokémon. Gliscor then controlled its movements and flew higher. Ethan choked as he noticed its neck was slightly crooked.

Not content with his foe's Pokémon still being able to move, Red wasted no time in giving Blastoise another command. "Hydro Cannon."

Blastoise slapped its cheeks to help it focus, and then aimed its water cannons up into the air, directly at Gliscor. Ethan's eyes widened.

"Gliscor, cut it off with X-Scissor!"

Gliscor turned and launched an X-shaped light blue energy at Blastoise before it could launch a Hydro Cannon attack. The attack was a direct hit and Blastoise was pushed back, its own attack cancelled.

However, Blastoise wasn't knocked down. It quickly regained its balance, and motioned to Red that it was ready to make another move. Red nodded a little. "Aim your cannons at the ground and use Hydro Cannon."

Blastoise complied, and unexpectedly it **somersaulted **where it stood and pulled back its head, arms and legs. Then with a roar, it fired off two big water orbs from its cannons that propelled it high into the air, heading straight towards Gliscor.

"Gliscor, watch out!" Ethan called out, but Gliscor was too hurt to look back and so the flying Blastoise struck Gliscor from below before rising even higher into the mud-filled sky.

Ethan looked with fear. "Gliscor!"

Gliscor was so close to fainting, it was doing all that it could just to stay conscious. Blastoise stopped shooting high and now it was above Gliscor. Their eyes met and Gliscor hissed.

It was inevitable that Red would give out the order when he did. Ethan somehow knew the older Trainer was going to say it. But that didn't make it any better when he did command Blastoise to prepare another Skull Bash.

"Gliscor, no! Glide away! Glide away!"

But Gliscor was immobilized; after the last hit from Blastoise, Gliscor was just too exhausted to move anywhere. Blastoise pointed its head down as it prepared for gravity to pull it back down.

"Come on Gliscor, don't give up! You've gotta glide away!"

Blastoise was once again bathed in an unbelievable silver glow.

"Please Gliscor, you have to get away! Get away!"

The Shellfish Pokémon pulled back its head.

"Noooooooooooo! Gliscor!"

Red grabbed his cap. "Now, Blastoise."

And with that, Blastoise's head once again glowed silver and it launched itself headfirst towards Gliscor, ready to ram it down onto solid ground.

"X-SCISSOR!" Ethan screamed in a last desperate attempt, and Gliscor mustered all its remaining strength into forming another light blue X-shaped energy in its claws that it swiped at point blank on the plummeting Blastoise's head.

However, Blastoise simply muscled its way through the attack and the Skull Bash landed right on Gliscor's stomach and it shouted in extreme pain. Once more, Ethan could only watch in terror as the two Pokémon headed down to earth at breakneck speed, before finally colliding with the ground with a deafening 'BOOM', kicking up dirt and snow and mud everywhere.

"GLISCOOOOOOOOOOOR!"

Ethan ran to the middle of the field, where he saw that his Gliscor's arms were crossed across its chest and, more heart-wrenchingly, broken. Gliscor did all that it could to block Skull Bash and as a result its arms took the brunt of a force that was simply too much. Ethan fell to his knees and held his unconscious Gliscor's arms – bent in very peculiar angles - in his hands.

And its arms weren't the only things broken: Ethan saw his Pokémon's head was dented where the first Skull Bash landed. He put his hand on its head and felt, to his absolute horror, broken bones. "Gliscor..." Ethan muttered, before he embraced the pulverized Fang Scorp Pokémon and wept in a massive newly-formed hole on the ground.

All of a sudden, Blastoise – holding its own injured head but still standing strong – neared the two of them, and it bent down and aimed its water cannons at Gliscor. Through watery eyes, Ethan looked at Red, who had his right hand outstretched to the battlefield, hands splayed open, as if he's about to give the word to Blastoise, ready to finish off his foe.

_I see._ "I lost," Ethan declared, and Red pulled back his arm. The younger Trainer then put his ear on Gliscor's head and tried to pick up a sound, any sound, it could possibly make. Much to his satisfaction, he heard Gliscor's weak breathing, and so he returned it to its Poké Ball. _Rest well, Gliscor. And I'm sorry._

Red put his hand in his pocket and took out his own Poké Ball and returned the Shellfish Pokémon into it.

As if to finalize the whole thing, Blue's familiar voice rang out from somewhere. "Two minutes and thirteen seconds." And with that, the mudstorm stopped and round two ended.


	5. Cloud Nine

Cloud Nine

"Gliscor?" Blue asked when Ethan sent out his second Pokémon, more to himself than to the young woman beneath him. "Why would the little runt send out Gliscor against Blastoise? He should know that a Ground-type Pokémon like Gliscor is weak to Water-type moves."

Leaf observed Ethan in silence. He was talking to Gliscor about something, and his face showed worry. "Would you believe me if I said this is his way of saying sorry for punching Red?"

Blue laughed. "As if! Look at that determined face," he pointed at Ethan's face. "He's trying to make a point to us. I'm guessing it's something like 'I can win even in a type disadvantage'."

"Hmm..." Leaf hummed. "Maybe. If that's the case, then that point is made either to us," she responded as Gliscor took flight, "or to himself. Either way, let's watch."

"Gliscor, use Sandstorm!" Ethan's voice could clearly be heard, and after commanding his Gliscor to enlarge the storm's size, the whole mountaintop was covered in a raging vortex of sand and stones, a vortex that without question reached the tree Blue was on and Leaf was under.

"Whoa whoa whoa, the runt's not holding back, is he?" Blue exclaimed, sitting upright in an instant. Wind was pushing him off his branch, and sand was creeping into his eyes. "Leaf, isn't this a good time to bring your Pokémon out?"

Leaf held her hat in place so it wouldn't get blown away. "Right. Come out, Golduck!" She opened one of her own Poké Balls and then a blue duck with a gem on its forehead came out.

"Golduck, focus your powers and activate your Ability. Surround this tree with Cloud Nine!" She commanded the Golduck, which proceeded to look around in confusion first, as if it was surprised to be on a sand-covered snowy mountain.

"Oh, just do it already, you dumb duck!" Leaf shouted in comical frustration as her skirt was lifted up by the harsh winds. Golduck immediately brought its webbed hands up to its forehead and closed its eyes. The gem on its head shone bright, and then a mystical air surrounded it. Golduck then opened its eyes – which were shining as well – and suddenly a small area around the tree was covered in a room of mysterious powers.

Suddenly, there was no more wind nor sand and stones. It was as if the tree and its surroundings were completely shielded from the effects of Gliscor's Sandstorm attack.

"Phew, that's more like it. Thanks, Golduck!" Blue said to it after he sat back down as he did before. Leaf also sat down on the ground, brushing dirt off her clothes. She looked at her Pokémon. "You never change, do you?"

Golduck's eyes stopped glowing and it looked at its Trainer, tilting its head while making a sound like its confused. In a flash, the effects of the storm of the battle covered the tree again, and the unprepared Blue quickly fell from his branch onto the ground, his head covered in the snow.

"Don't stop focusing your powers, Golduck! Surround the tree with Cloud Nine again!" Leaf yelled to it as she stooped her head. Golduck focused again and there was no more wind once more.

Leaf tried to control her breaths as her friend struggled with the pull of the snow. His head was still stuck. A few seconds after that, there was a large 'BOOM' that occurred somewhere and Blue's head was forcibly shook underneath the ground. Finally it popped out, and he looked flustered.

"You dumb duck!" She stood up immediately and knocked Golduck's head as she scowled. "I should smash your head with a bike again."

Blue wiped his face clean with his sleeves. "Easy Leaf. We still need it alive, you know." And then he shook his head, still dizzy from the earthquake he received straight to his face.

Leaf turned around, looking grumpy, and the she massaged her temples. "Ohh, now it's giving **me** a headache..."

Blue climbed onto his branch again while Leaf sat with her back on the tree, and they both continued to observe the battle in silence. Around a minute later, something incredible happened: Blastoise was creating a huge wind vortex inside the raging sandstorm while shooting out Hydro Cannon attacks.

"Ha-ha!" Blue commented in a triumphant voice. Leaf nodded in agreement.

"He's doing it again," Leaf replied.

"Yup." Blue smirked. "We all know there are principally four weather conditions that could affect a battle."

"Intense sunlight, heavy rain, sandstorm, hailstorm," Leaf answered.

"Uh-huh. And only one can occur in the middle of a battle. So if Red wanted it to rain, then the sandstorm needed to be stopped."

Leaf continued him, "But while Red needed to make the weather wet, he didn't need to make the sandstorm stop."

Blue nodded. "Exactly. Even without Rain Dance, Red can still make a pseudo-rain by combining Rapid Spin and Hydro Cannon."

"Which in turn doesn't replace Sandstorm, but rather merged with it, resulting in this messy mudstorm."

"And the sheer brilliance of it is that, in effect, he has managed to create **two** ongoing weather conditions in this battle."

"What's more, he effectively turned what was Ethan's advantage to his own. Look," she pointed at Gliscor, "mud's sticking on it. Red has not only brought Gliscor out of hiding, he also managed to stop it from flying away."

"Red. Ingenious as always. Unorthodox and completely original. There's no more sand or water now, only mud." Blue shook his head. "That guy's created a new weather condition!"

Leaf chuckled. "He didn't really do that. It's just... he managed to stop the 'sand' part of 'Sandstorm'. But the 'storm' itself is still raging on."

"I bet the people at Hoenn's Weather Institute would just **love** to get a glimpse of this." He snorted. "Tampering with the weather, can you believe this guy?"

"Maybe they would," she replied, "but I know something that would grab their attention even more."

He looked at her from above. "Oh, you're talking about 'that', aren't you?"

Leaf nodded. "The fifth in-battle weather condition. The one Red managed to invent all by himself."

"I wonder if he'll show it to that runt in this battle..." Blue wondered aloud as they continued to observe the battle.

Then they witnessed Blastoise spinning laterally at the grounded Gliscor, who let out an X-Scissor attack in desperation, only to be deflected by the shell and get hit the next second.

After Gliscor was rammed to a rocky wall on the far side, Blastoise wasted no time in coming out of its shell and pinning Gliscor to the wall with its arms, who retaliated with a barrage of close range X-Scissor attacks.

_All those X-Scissor attacks won't stop Blastoise, _Leaf commented in her head. _Not after it has used Iron Defense three times to maximize its Defense._

And as Red commanded his Blastoise to use Skull Bash, she squinted her eyes.

"Is that really necessary, do you think?" she asked.

"Hmm?" Blue didn't take his eyes off the battle. "Well, the little runt **did **headbutt the guy, didn't he? We both know how Red hates to lose, even in the smallest of things."

"Feeling nostalgic, Blue?"

"Somewhat," he said as he shrugged. "But I have to agree with you: a point-blank Skull Bash to the head is too extreme, at least for my tastes."

Leaf raised her eyebrow at him. "It's ironic you should say that."

"Hey, my past extremities are nothing compared to that," Blue defended himself by pointing towards the two battling Pokémon, right as Blastoise smashed its head against Gliscor's, leaving a hole on the wall of solid rock behind it.

As Blastoise staggered back and Gliscor glided away, Leaf shook her head in disappointment while Blue whistled. _ Oh Red..._

The two of them kept watching the battle, and their eyes widened when moments later they saw Blastoise making a beeline for the airborne Gliscor by using Hydro Cannon at the ground.

"Blue!" She exclaimed after Blastoise was above Gliscor. "Is Red doing what I think he's doing?"

"No way. No way in Distortion World would he ever... No way!"

But as Blastoise became bathed in another mystical silver glow, Blue's suspicion was confirmed. "That murderous little psycho! He's... he's combining the recharging period of Hydro Cannon with the charging period of Skull Bash!"

Leaf's jaw dropped in amazement. "Unthinkable. Making full use of the time Blastoise can't move after a powerful attack to immediately prepare yet another powerful attack."

"And from midair, too... I've never seen anything like this!" Blue was on the edge of his seat. "Even **I **wouldn't go that far. When did he come up with this trick?"

Leaf looked at Red, and as he gave the command to Blastoise, she returned her attention to Gliscor. "Seems like we've been away from this place longer than we thought."

And as Blastoise shot back down – Gliscor's last-gasp X-Scissor stopping nothing – Leaf closed her eyes with her hands. She didn't want to see this. Blue bit his lip, his heart beating faster than usual. Although he didn't show it, he was concerned about Ethan and Gliscor. Even Golduck's breathing became erratic.

The sound of the impact reverberated throughout Mt. Silver. Ethan ran to the middle of the battlefield and held his Pokémon in his hands. Even from this distance it was clear to Leaf that Gliscor's condition was worse than 'badly damaged'; it was 'horribly, horribly damaged'. Leaf put her hand to her mouth to prevent herself from throwing up.

"Time?" she forced herself to ask Blue as Ethan declared his loss.

Snapping out of the surprise and coming back to reality, Blue checked his wristwatch. Then he turned his attention to the battlefield. "Two minutes and thirteen seconds," he stated loudly so the two battling Trainers could hear him.

Ethan didn't react to it at all. He had returned Gliscor to its Poké Ball, but he was just sitting there, weeping. Leaf felt bad for him, but there was nothing she could do.

To her surprise, Blue called out to Ethan "What's wrong, runt? Can't take the pressure?"

The younger Trainer said nothing in response, but he did turn around.

"Y'know, when I said you had to give this battle your everything, I didn't mean you had to give us your ugly little babyface too!" he went on.

"Shut up, Blue," Ethan finally said to him. Blue snickered.

"Well if you want me to shut up, then answer me now: are you a battler or a quitter?"

Ethan looked at Blue fiercely, but he knew Blue was right. He wiped his tears and made up his mind. _I'm not going to quit. Not after what Ambipom and Gliscor went through. We're a family and we go through everything to the very end together._

"Let's continue the challenge," he said quietly. Blue heard him, but he pretended not to.

"Sorry, what was that, little runt?"

"I said I'm going for it! I'll win this whole thing!"

Blue smirked again. "Good. Then get your butt back to your side and let's get on with it!"

Ethan did, and soon Red and Ethan was facing off against each other again, both grabbing one of their Poké Balls.

"Both Trainers ready?" Blue shouted. The both of them nodded.

"Then let the challenge resume. Round 3, begin!"


	6. Round Three

Round Three

Ethan's eyes widened as his eyes fell on the Espeon Red sent out as his third Pokémon. Its sweet purr didn't distract Ethan one bit from the fact that he's fighting the strongest Pokémon Trainer he's ever faced.

"It's your turn," he murmured. "Let's go, Heracross!"

He threw his Poké Ball to the middle of the field where it opened with a loud 'PING', and from it out came the Single Horn Pokémon, buzzing around its young Trainer with spirit.

_Alright, so far I've always made the first move, and Red's Pokémon always took the hit and struck back hard, _Ethan thought. _Maybe now I should let him attack first and then I can counterattack..._

And with that plan, Ethan remained quiet, while Heracross stood on the field, poised and battle-ready as Espeon stretched its body in front of its motionless Trainer. Winds blew by and the morning sun slowly made its way up to the sky. Neither Trainer gave a command, and Heracross was getting visibly tense.

"Reflect," Red said after a while, and Espeon quickly set up a cube-shaped light barrier around itself with a shout. The light barrier shone and then it disappeared, making it seem like it did nothing, but everyone watching knew what Red just did.

"Shoot!" Ethan shouted. "Heracross, Aerial Ace now!"

Heracross quickly flew up in an arc and flips, and then it gained momentum as it headed back down, and then before it hit the ground it sped up, white light streaking around it before it disappeared from sight and struck Espeon from out of nowhere.

As Heracross landed its hit on Espeon, the cube of light shone and surrounded Espeon and a sound like a mirror being hit came from it. Ethan gritted his teeth.

"Espeon, Psychic," Red commanded and Espeon spun in the air as the gem on its head shone brightly. The air around it rippled with a faint purple color, and Heracross fell to the ground holding its head and screaming loud.

"Heracross!" Ethan shouted. A direct hit from a Psychic-type move like that was very bad news.

"Hold on, Heracross! Stay strong!"

Heracross kept screaming in pain as the Psychic attack chewed through its brain without letting up. Ethan's Pokémon covered its hands on top of its head in hopes of blocking the overwhelming telekinetic force.

Ethan clenched his fists, hoping the attack would stop soon. And to his pleasant surprise, it did. The air around Espeon's head went back to normal and Heracross quickly flew away.

The younger Trainer let out the breath he was silently holding. "Heracross," he called out, "are you okay?"

Dizzied, Heracross nodded a little and gave Ethan a thumb's up. It narrowed its eyes on its opponent, who didn't look hurt one bit, even though that Aerial Ace landed directly. Ethan inhaled.

_That Reflect helped Espeon regain its balance quicker than expected, which means I can't get close to it or else it'll just quickly counter with Psychic, _he said to himself. _What should I do...?_

"Psychic," Red commanded again, and Espeon launched another direct Psychic attack at Heracross.

"Heracross, dodge it!" Ethan shouted and Heracross flew away, the telekinetic force of the Psychic making a wave of purple ripples in the air below Heracross.

Red turned to the offensive. "Move and chase it down."

Suddenly, Espeon's eyes became focused and it moved towards Heracross, launching purple telekinetic energy blasts at its foe.

"Away, Heracross! Don't let that Psychic hit you!" Ethan commanded, and Heracross flew away from Espeon, who followed its Trainer's instruction to the letter and chased after Heracross.

Heracross flew higher and higher, trying to get away from Espeon's attacks. But then, the Sun Pokémon shouted and launched an even stronger Psychic attack and aimed it straight up. The powerful force flew fast, grazing Heracross who only managed to avoid it at the last second, only managing to disorient it a little.

"So we can't avoid it by height," Ethan whispered to himself. "Then let's use speed. Heracross, into the forest! Lose it in the middle of the trees!"

Heracross maneuvered in the air and turned its flight path towards the cluster of trees that surrounded the battlefield. It passed the tree stump that was the result of Snorlax's earlier Outrage attack and disappeared from sight.

However, Espeon wasn't about to let Heracross escape its onslaught of Psychic attacks, and ran off on Heracross's trail, launching its telekinetic energy blasts at the fleeing beetle.

Ethan left his spot and headed towards the edge of the forest, trying to get a glimpse of what was happening in there. He could see big branches falling off trees and leaves flying all over the place as Espeon's attacks hit everything in their path.

"Ugh, apparently Espeon's fast enough to keep up with Heracross," Ethan said. "And it's smaller and sleeker than Heracross, too."

"That's right, runt," Blue said from above a tree behind Ethan, surprising him. He had forgotten that Blue was sitting on a tree branch nearer to the battlefield. Ethan turned around.

"Look at that." He pointed at the ongoing mayhem in the middle of the forest as trees fell and echoes bounced off. Ethan turned again to see Espeon leaping from tree to tree in its effort on taking Heracross down. "If this keeps up, it's only a matter of time before Espeon lands a hit."

Ethan knew his senior was right. He could see his own Pokémon swiftly swerving in the air, above roots, below branches, circling trees, trying to shake off its foe to no success. Even though Espeon couldn't fly, it was managing very well by using the branches. Obviously it had been trained to climb and leap in rapid succession.

Heracross turned in a wide semi-circle around the forest with Espeon close on its proverbial tail, and soon they were out of Ethan's line of sight.

Espeon kept launching Psychic attacks at Heracross, who was doing all that it could to dodge. Up, down, right and left, Espeon just doggedly pursued it, fully intent on bringing Heracross down.

Heracross then turned sharply to its left and tried to exit the cluster of trees, when one of Espeon's attacks severed a branch **above and in front** of Heracross and the Bug-type Pokémon inadvertently crashed into it, messing its flight pattern and making it spin out of control.

Espeon made a big leap towards Heracross, who was stumbling in midair as it exited the forest above Red's head.

Red didn't look up. "Psychic." Espeon leapt one last time above Heracross and launched a full-power Psychic attack at Heracross.

But Ethan, back in his spot, wasn't about to let his Pokémon take that. "Use Aerial Ace to get away!"

Not knowing which way is up or down, Heracross sped up anyway and made a midair flip and zoomed away from Espeon's attack at the last second by using gravity's pull to help its escape.

"Phew. Nice job, Heracross," Ethan said to it as Heracross landed near its Trainer, panting heavily.

Espeon also landed in front of its Trainer, and the two battling Pokémon stared each other down. Espeon hadn't lost its breath, even though it had moved a lot more than Heracross did.

"His Espeon is so durable, and its stamina is unbelievable," Ethan said. "It's fast, it's accurate, and it's strong with special moves." He then looked at Heracross, tired after all that flying and dodging both trees and pursuer. "Only by using Aerial Ace can Heracross give Espeon the slip... Hey wait a sec. That gives me an idea!"

Espeon loosened up its body and stretched out its limbs, readying itself for another chase should Ethan tell Heracross to run away again. But to Espeon's surprise, Ethan gave a different order.

"Heracross, Focus Punch!"

Heracross closed its eyes and focused, raising its right arm which glowed with bright white light. Red was quick to use this opportunity.

"Psychic, now."

Espeon did as it was told and launched a Psychic attack at its immobile foe. But Ethan quickly made his move. "Dodge using Aerial Ace!"

Eyes closed, Heracross opened its wings in an instant and speedily flew up, avoiding the Psychic attack. Then it made another midair flip and picked up speed and disappeared from sight again, before suddenly launching itself at Espeon from its right side!

"And strike! Focus Punch!" Ethan shouted.

Heracross opened its eyes right as it threw its shining right arm at Espeon's face **as well as **ramming it with its body as the Aerial Ace attack.

However, the Reflect barrier from before appeared again around Espeon and protected it from the full blow, but Espeon was flung nonetheless, far towards the mountainous wall of rock, the same one where Gliscor was pinned to in the previous match.

"Follow it up with Megahorn!"

Still in flight, Heracross aimed its horn – which was glowing white now – right at Espeon and **smashed** it directly with no letup. Espeon shrieked in pain as the attack hit its mark, leaving another huge hole beside the one Red's Blastoise had made along with a cloud of dust.

When the hit landed the cube barrier of light shone again and Ethan knew that, if it weren't for that Reflect, Espeon might have fainted already.

"Heracross, back away now!"

Heracross jumped back to put some distance between it and its foe in case of another Psychic attack.

"Hyper Beam, straight to your front," Red said, and to Ethan's unpleasant surprise a very bright, very long and very big red-and-white ray of light shot out from the dust cloud and hit Heracross at its chest, exploding with impact and pushing it back towards the other side of the field.

"Heracross!" Ethan called out to his Pokémon as it hit a tree and fell to the ground for the second time. "Get up, now! We have to strike back **now!**"

The Single Horn Pokémon immediately stood up, shaken but undefeated. Ethan exhaled.

"Megahorn again!"

Heracross chirped loudly as it ducked and flew straight at Espeon again, its horn glowing once more. Espeon was still dazed.

"Espeon, dodge!" Red growled, but Espeon was unable to move as it was still recharging its energy. Ethan's eyes widened at the prospect of victory as Heracross picked up speed and...

...missed Espeon altogether!

"What?" Ethan yelled, grabbing the backwards hat on his head out of frustration as Heracross misaimed its attack and hit the rocky wall instead, squeaking in pain. "Heracross, you're too close to Espeon! Fly away!"

"Psychic!"

The air rippled faintly purple as Espeon's gem glowed, but the attack missed because Heracross managed to punch the wall at the last second. The backwards force pushed it back and then it hovered away.

"Morning Sun," Red ordered immediately. Ethan howled, "NO!"

Espeon shouted as its whole body was covered in a bright light. Its wounds seemed to be closing up.

But Ethan wasn't going to stand idly by. "Aerial Ace, let's go!"

Heracross maneuvered in the air and rammed Espeon again right as it was healing. The Reflect barrier shone once more as it suppressed the damage Espeon took.

"That's five hits suppressed," Ethan said. "Reflect should wear off now."

The Sun Pokémon landed acrobatically on the ground and stared at the airborne Single Horn Pokémon. Ethan noticed its breathing was slightly off. _So it's not back to its full health, eh? Good..._

Apparently Red took note of this too, because he then ordered the last thing Ethan wanted to hear: "Reflect."

With a shout, a new barrier of light shone around Espeon before disappearing. Heracross made a growling noise as its opponent was once more protected from physical moves, which was all it had. Ethan took a deep breath.

"Alright then. Time to kick it up a notch," Ethan muttered, before turning his attention towards his Pokémon. "Heracross. Toxic."

Heracross took a deep breath, and then spat out a stream of thick purple liquid at Espeon.

"Dodge it," Red said, and Espeon moved away.

"Climb, Heracross! Spray Toxic all over the field if you have to!"

Heracross did what it was told and flew up and kept spraying Toxic all over the place. Espeon moved fast – almost as fast as before – all around the battlefield to avoid the poisonous liquid, but it finally slipped on the snowy ground and Heracross wasted no time to spray Toxic on it.

Espeon shrieked loudly again as it glowed bright purple, the powerful poison permeating its skin, seeping through its body. It was badly poisoned.

Then, for no apparent reason, Heracross glowed purple as well! It didn't shout like Espeon did, but it was definitely poisoned too.

"I knew it. Synchronize took effect," Ethan said with a smirk. He seemed almost satisfied with the fact that his Pokémon had gotten poisoned.

Suddenly a crimson aura surrounded Heracross, and its eyes glowed red. Heracross let out a sharp howl and Espeon shuddered.

"Alright, Heracross! Aerial Ace!" Ethan commanded, and Heracross flew so fast it vanished in the middle of the air! The next second, Espeon was struck back and it yelled in pain. Then Heracross came to view again, already behind Espeon.

Even though the hit was suppressed by Reflect, Espeon still seemed to be hurt quite a lot. Red realized Heracross's dramatic increase in power.

"I see," he mumbled, right as the two battling Pokémon glowed purple and they both jerked and took poison damage. "Espeon, into the forest."

"Oh no, you don't! You can't escape Aerial Ace!" Ethan shouted. "Heracross, wear Espeon down. Repeated Aerial Ace!"

The Single Horn Pokémon nodded and launched multiple Aerial Ace attacks, with Espeon trying to dodge it as it ran into the trees. This time it was Heracross doing the chasing, while the Sun Pokémon ran away.

Heracross's attacks landed, one after another, with each hit being followed-up by poison damage. After a couple of hits, it became clear that Espeon was taking much more damage than Heracross was. Ethan paid close attention to how many hits Heracross has landed, and after the fifth hit Ethan smirked.

"Reflect's off! Finish it off quick with Megahorn!"

Heracross aimed its big horn at Espeon and flew straight at its nimble tree-leaping opponent. Espeon was losing its breath as it landed on a branch.

"Dodge and use Morning Sun," Red commanded, turning his attention to the forest hiding the battling Pokémon. Espeon proceeded to hop off the branch it was on, and Heracross came flying close to it. But to Heracross's surprise, Espeon suddenly grabbed the branch with its tail, faking its own fall and letting Heracross crash-land headfirst on the ground, while Espeon climbed back up again and healed itself.

"Oh crap, no!" Ethan yelled when he saw what happened. Espeon regained its strength, but then the bad poison damaged it and it quickly became tired again.

_The Toxic is doing its job. If I can't make it faint directly, I'll just have to stall until it faints on its own, or until the three-minute mark, _Ethan thought. _Better make sure Heracross stays at a safe distance then..._

"Heracross, out here on the field!" Ethan ordered. "Get away from Espeon now!"

"Espeon, follow it."

Heracross opened its wings and zoomed out of the trees, and Espeon bounded off towards Red. The two Pokémon was on the battlefield again. For a moment, Ethan felt triumphant when he laid eyes on Red's worn down Pokémon, but then he took a look at his own Pokémon and instantly dropped a sweat of fear.

Heracross's body was battered, and it was struggling just to breathe at a normal pace as the poison was taking its toll. In the heat of Heracross's high-speed Aerial Aces, Ethan forgot the fact that he allowed his own Pokémon to get poisoned, and it was clear that Heracross could take little more. It doesn't help that ramming yourself against a psychic barrier of light over and over again physically tired you out, too.

All of a sudden, Heracross dropped to its knees. "Heracross!" Ethan shouted, and Heracross chirped a little. It stood back up, letting its Trainer know it was ready for another attack, but Ethan was hesitant. In any other Pokémon battle, Heracross would've been deemed unable to battle by whoever was judging the match, but there were no judges this time, so it was all up to Ethan to make the call.

_I can't stall this battle. If I do, Heracross would collapse before Espeon does, _Ethan said to himself. _Espeon still has a little fight in it, while Heracross is already on its last legs. It won't last much longer._

He then looked at the Sun Pokémon, trying to control its own breaths, careful not to shake its poison-riddled body. _There's only one chance here, and that's for me to hit fast and hit hard..._

But Red had already finished calculating his next move. "Reflect."

_NO! _If Espeon sets up another Reflect now, Heracross wouldn't be able to cause any meaningful damage and it would most certainly faint first. _I need to attack while Heracross can still move._

"Heracross, Aerial Ace **now!**"

Still covered in the red aura after its power-up, the Single Horn Pokémon zoomed up, flipped, and zoomed down, vanishing from sight for a second accompanied by white streaks as it cleaved through the air, and then reappeared right in front of Espeon's face!

"Hyper Beam!"

"WHAT?"

The Psychic-type Pokémon stopped what it was doing and immediately fired off an impressively large beam of red-and-white light energy from the gem on its forehead **point blank** at the speeding Heracross, exploding in its face and sending it all the way back to the edge of the mountaintop.

Heracross screamed in pain all the way, until it finally blacked out.


	7. Reckless

Reckless

Blue smirked when he saw who Red sent out next to battle. "Well well well, look who it is."

"Espeon," Leaf said as she pondered on whether or not to return her Golduck back to its Poké Ball.

"And look who the little runt chose to face it," Blue commented on Ethan's own Pokémon.

After deciding to let Golduck stay out with her, Leaf turned her attention to the battlefield. "Heracross. An interesting choice," she said. "It's a Fighting-type Pokémon, so it has a disadvantage against Espeon. But it's also a Bug-type, which means Espeon is disadvantaged against it, in a way."

"Exactly. This should be good," Blue remarked. The two of them watched eagerly as Blue readied himself to start his timer whenever one of the Trainers gave a command. But then...

"What the heck? Why aren't they doing anything?" Blue wondered aloud after about fifteen seconds. "Is the runt seriously letting Red have the first move?"

"That won't be good," Leaf muttered.

Sure enough, Red was done waiting for Ethan, and then he gave his command to Espeon. Blue snorted. "Heh, finally. 'Bout time," he said as he started his timer and officially started the match. He and Leaf observed the battle closely, and a few moments later they saw Heracross flying away from Espeon after it was hit by a Psychic attack.

"That'll teach him to recklessly attack Red like that," Blue mumbled.

"Psychic." They heard Red's command, and the two of them watched in silence as Espeon moved around the battlefield gracefully, trying to land another hit on Heracross, who was fleeing upwards into the sky.

"Heracross, into the forest! Lose it in the middle of the trees!"

Blue and Leaf spun in place as Heracross zoomed past them and into the surrounding cluster of trees with Espeon in tow. Blue now faced the forest and witnessed a high-speed chase between the two Pokémon.

The young man whistled. "Whew, they sure can move fast."

"But I think it's more impressive that Espeon can keep up with Heracross who's flying all over the place," Leaf noted.

"Uh-huh. Boy, has that little thing grown so much."

Leaf looked up. "Are you having second thoughts?"

"Who, me?" Blue responded as he saw Ethan run to edge of the forest. "Nah, I was just thinking about the amazing results of its training with Red, that's all."

"Sure you are..." Leaf chuckled as Blue said something to Ethan. She then turned her attention to the multitude of branches that were falling all over the place as Heracross turned and swerved without ever losing Espeon. _Espeon... You've gone through so much, but now look at you._

And then Heracross made a sharp turn, still chased by Espeon. "You know, I think Ethan's a little bit surprised," Leaf said. "He fought Snorlax and then Blastoise: two slow but tough and powerful Pokémon. Now he's up against a small, sleek fighter that can strikes fast and hard."

"So you're saying the runt probably didn't think Red had a Pokémon like Espeon in his team?"

"Just a thought." She shrugged. "Espeon's battling style **is **very different to the rest of the Pokémon in Red's team."

Blue laughed. "Well yeah, I guess technically you're right."

They then witnessed Heracross stumbling in midair as it collided with a branch that Espeon severed, and nearly got blasted away with another direct Psychic attack if it wasn't for Ethan quickly ordering an Aerial Ace to escape.

There was a staring contest between the two Pokémon on the field for a while, before Ethan called for a Focus Punch attack. Blue and Leaf were both taken by surprise.

"What is he up to..." Blue wondered about the younger Trainer's choice of attacks as Heracross motionlessly focused, when Red quickly retaliated with a Psychic attack. But then Ethan ordered an Aerial Ace attack and Blue understood.

"Ooh, not bad. Not bad at all," he said, rubbing his chin. "He used the mechanics of how Aerial Ace works to his advantage."

The young woman nodded. "Aerial Ace requires the user to speed up by moving up and down in a flash," she said as Espeon got hit by both Focus Punch and Aerial Ace. "By telling Heracross to focus, he drew his opponent in to attack, and then used the speed from Aerial Ace to dodge and give it uninterruptible time to finish the required pre-attack focus."

"And not to mention it means he gets in two hits for the price of one move, and... OUCH!" Blue exclaimed when Espeon was struck by Heracross's large horn. "That has **got** to hurt!"

"Wow, I'm impressed." Leaf fixed her hat. "For once, Ethan's taking the lead in the battle."

And then came the Hyper Beam from close range, much to Ethan's surprise. Blue whistled again. Ethan's Heracross was knocked down.

"Megahorn again!" Ethan commanded after his Heracross got up, which it immediately did. In response, Red barked an order for his Espeon to dodge, but it was still unable to move.

"Blue!" Leaf exclaimed. "Did Red... Did Red **growl** just now?"

"I know! I heard it too," Blue replied, equally surprised. He was sitting on the edge of his branch again, watching the intense match. "The runt's actually drawing an emotional reaction from the guy. Amazing."

Heracross flew fast, but then it crash-landed as its Megahorn attack missed. Blue let out a breath. "Oh man, that was close!"

"I know what you mean," Leaf agreed. "But that was to be expected. Using powerful moves like Megahorn is like swinging a two-handed sword: the sheer force of the attack means it'll deal a **lot **more damage, but that also makes it harder to aim. Great power is sometimes hard to control."

"That's right. Tough break for the little runt," Blue said, looking at Ethan, who was understandably frustrated. He almost managed to strike Espeon at its weakest. Then Red called for a Morning Sun and everything became a whole lot worse for Ethan.

"Man, I'd hate to be in his shoes right now," Blue commented flatly.

"Red's always aware that Espeon isn't big on defense, and that's why he taught it Reflect to ward off physical hits, because it's already tough against Special moves," Leaf said, right as Red told Espeon to set up another Reflect. "Just like that."

"Yup. And just in case his opponent somehow managed to get in a few good blows to Espeon, he kept the Morning Sun technique around."

"I wonder what Ethan will do now..." Leaf wondered.

"Heracross. Toxic."

"Toxic? Well I sure didn't see that coming," Blue said as Heracross sprayed Toxic all over the battlefield, hoping to poison Espeon. "So now he's trying to wither Espeon down?"

Leaf scratched the side of her head. "The thing is, Espeon has the Synchronize Ability, which means Heracross will get poisoned too if it hits," she said, right as Espeon slipped on the snow and got sprayed with Toxic and glowed purple with poison, followed by Heracross. "And again, like that."

"The runt did this before, right?" Blue asked.

"Yes, when he was up against an opponent he couldn't beat with strength alone. Ethan opted to beat it by poisoning," Leaf answered. "Odd that a powerful fighter like Heracross would know a defensive move like that, but then again, Ethan never was the type to rely on pure strength alone."

"Unlike someone I know during the earlier years of their Pokémon training career," Blue remarked playfully, earning him a glare from Leaf.

Then Heracross unleashed a blood-curdling battle cry and its body became consumed in a crimson aura that lit up the morning sky. One look at Heracross's now-red eyes and Blue grinned.

"Oh, so that's what he was aiming for!" he exclaimed in understanding. "He did that on purpose. Not a bad trick at all, for a runt."

"Guts," Leaf simply said. "Ethan knew that Espeon would passively pass the poison on to Heracross, and that it would activate its Ability, greatly increasing its prowess with physical moves."

"Which is actually quite brilliant," Blue acknowledged. "The move Toxic badly poisons the target, but Synchronize only passes that on as regular poison." He then paid careful attention to Espeon, who had just been struck by an Aerial Ace more powerful than usual. "With that, he's made sure that the poison will take down Espeon at a faster rate than it will Heracross."

"Yeah, but it's a risky ploy, don't you think?" Leaf asked as Espeon ran back into the forest, with Heracross close on its tail. "Even though Heracross is only poisoned by normal poison, and Espeon by bad poison, Heracross is already pretty tired. And it can't heal, unlike Espeon."

"You got a point there." Blue nodded. "Even if Espeon's worn down first, it can always use Morning Sun, provided Red can find an opening to do so." He kept a careful eye on the Pokémon that's being repeatedly struck by Guts-powered Aerial Aces. "But then again, if Heracross keeps up that pressure, Espeon might just get pushed to its very limit."

"I suppose. And it's clever for him to tell Heracross to stick to Aerial Ace, which will never miss. Boosted by Guts, I think even Red and Espeon will find this challenging." Unlike Blue, she was paying more attention on the pursuer. "But Heracross has already been struck by a Psychic and a Hyper Beam and hasn't healed. I doubt it can keep up this pressure for long."

After a couple more hits, the Reflect barrier wore off. "Whoa!" Blue and Leaf exclaimed at the same time.

"Finish it off quick with Megahorn!"

"What? No! Bad move!" Blue murmured a yell as Heracross attacked and missed again. Espeon's body shone once more as it healed its wounds atop a tree branch.

"Tch, what an idiot! He got caught up in the heat of his own fury of attacks and miscalculated Espeon's ability to evade!"

"Why are you getting all worked up over this?" Leaf inquired, honestly curious. "Are you actually rooting for Ethan?"

Blue then looked back at her. "Aren't we supposed to? Isn't his chance at victory the whole reason we invited him here?"

Leaf opened her mouth to argue, but then she thought about how correct his answer was and suddenly she blushed with embarrassment. "Right. I forgot about that. Ahahahaha..."

Blue looked away, towards the field, where Espeon and Heracross are now. "You never change. When it comes to your **boyfriend,**" he emphasized the word 'boyfriend', "you're pretty quick to forget the important stuff, Leaf."

"He's not..." she started, but then changed her mind. "...whatever."

Blue silently took a quick peek at Leaf, and picked up the intense sadness in her eyes. _Maybe I shouldn't have said that, _he thought.

The two observers watched in silence as the two battling Trainers carefully considered how to possibly end this match fast, since both their Pokémon are exhausted, though Heracross was visibly more worn out.

And then Red ordered a Reflect, and only for two seconds did that fool Blue. Unfortunately, Ethan fell for it. "NO!" Blue shouted, but it useless: Ethan told Heracross to immediately use Aerial Ace. _I know he's worried about Heracross and wants to finish the battle before it faints, but falling for his own trick?_

As Blue had predicted, Red wasn't actually going to use Reflect, and it seemed like Espeon knew about it, too. A simple switch of command to Hyper Beam and Blue knew it was over. A bruised, beaten, and battered Heracross taking a full-force Hyper Beam at point blank.

"HERACROSS, NOOOOO!" Ethan screamed in terror, watching his beloved Pokémon get flung far away from the battlefield out of its control, unconsciously falling down fast from the sky and away from Mt. Silver.

Blue shook his head as he figured out what Red was doing in an instant: he drew Ethan in with his command of Reflect, fully knowing that Ethan would react without hesitation because he wanted to make good use of the time Heracross is still able to fight with Guts. It was just like when Ethan used Focus Punch to draw Espeon's attention earlier.

As soon as Heracross was close enough, it was only a matter of using Hyper Beam at the right time. It was a gamble on Red's part, too: if he had been a second later in ordering the Hyper Beam, Heracross's last Aerial Ace would've landed and then, keeping in mind the fact that Espeon's badly poisoned, who knew what would've happened.

_Those two reckless Trainers, _he thought, disgusted with the fact that they're both so similarly unpredictable. _I hate that kind of battling, where your win or loss depends on nothing but luck._

"No," Leaf suddenly said to Blue. "Red has more than just luck now. He has enough experience to be able to adapt to battles quickly, knowing precisely when to do what at who." Then she looked at Blue and smiled gently. "Of course, to us normal people, it'd seem like he was betting on the whole maneuver."

_She just read my mind!_

"Blue!" Ethan called to him all of a sudden, snapping Blue out of his thoughts. He had already left his spot and ran towards the edge of the mountain, trying desperately to get closer to his Pokémon in the sky.

"I lost! This round's Red's! Stop the timer!" he shouted as he took out his Poké Ball and arrived at the very edge of the mountaintop summit. He aimed it at Heracross and called it back.

"Return, Heracross!" With that, a thin red ray of light shone from the middle of the Poké Ball, but it failed to reach the Pokémon.

"What?"

He tried again, but he missed. The third attempt was no different. "No, it can't be..." Ethan fell on his knees in despair, tears welling up. Heracross was shot and flung back so far away that it was falling from the sky at an incredibly fast rate but it was out of the reach of its Trainer's Poké Ball.

"Heracross, no... Dear Ho-oh, please no..."

Heracross was going to fall out of the sky and off Mt. Silver!

"Golduck, Confusion!" Leaf shouted, surprising Ethan who didn't realize the older Trainer was already beside him with her Golduck. The Duck Pokémon raised both of its arms toward the sky and, with a sharp cry, used the amazing telekinetic power of Confusion to stop Heracross's fall, even though it was so far away.

"Ethan, stop wasting your time and send out a flying Pokémon now!" she ordered him. "Golduck won't be able to keep this up for much longer."

"But, but... Gliscor's out cold."

"And your Noctowl?"

"Too small. It's even smaller than Heracross."

"Let's go, Fearow!" Blue shouted from behind them accompanied by a loud 'PING', and suddenly Blue was on a big brown bird Pokémon flying off into the distance, in the direction of Heracross.

His Fearow flew so fast that the two of them managed to reach the psychically-suspended Heracross in three seconds. As soon as Leaf was sure Heracross was safe in Blue's hands, she let her Golduck stop the Confusion.

Blue and Fearow then swiftly made their way back. As soon as they were back on Mt. Silver's summit, he carefully stepped off Fearow's back and handed over Heracross to its Trainer.

"Here, Ethan," he said, uncharacteristically soft.

"Thank you Blue! And thank you, Leaf!" Ethan replied, his eyes already tearing up at his uselessness for the third time today. He then whispered to Heracross.

"Hey buddy, are you alright?"

Heracross opened its eyes and, though it couldn't move, blinked. Ethan smiled. Relieved, he returned his Pokémon to its Poké Ball. "Take a good long rest, Heracross. You fought really well."

Ethan then controlled his breathing. Blue returned Fearow to its Poké Ball as well. "Just so you know," he said, "this round ended at two minutes and forty four seconds."

The younger Trainer said nothing, before standing up and headed back to his spot, with Blue, Leaf and her Golduck behind him. "Okay. Let's just start the next round."

Leaf looked at Blue, who nodded in return. Then they walked back to their tree, the nearest one to the battlefield. As the morning sun continued its climb the horizon, Blue sat back down on his usual branch.

"Both Trainers ready?" he called out. Red nodded silently. Ethan gave a thumb's up.

"Then let the challenge resume. Round 4, begin!"


End file.
